


The Loss of Numbness

by trustpants



Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Robots & Androids, Father-Son Relationship, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-24
Updated: 2020-10-24
Packaged: 2021-03-09 04:09:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 265
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27177673
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/trustpants/pseuds/trustpants
Summary: “Will,” Bill Graham—dad—says, “Everything okay?”“Fine, dad,” Will says, using the smile that always puts a fond look in the man’s eyes. He looks at Will like he really is his son, flesh and blood be damned.
Relationships: Will Graham & Will Graham's Father
Comments: 2
Kudos: 15





	The Loss of Numbness

“Spanner wrench,” Bill Graham says, and Will is quick to find the requested tool.

“Spanner wrench, sir.” Bill Graham winces.

“You don’t have to call me that, you know,” Bill Graham says. “When it’s just us here.”

“Is there something you would prefer I call you, sir?” Will asks, because it is polite, because it is protocol. Bill Graham is silent for a long time, but Will has nothing better to be doing. He waits, dutiful as he always is, as he always will be.

“Dad,” Bill Graham finally says. Will blinks. There is no rule explicitly against it, he supposes, though he knows Bill Graham was advised, as all humans are, not to grow too attached. _Service bots are not capable of human connection,_ the manufacturers say, _They are not your friends or lovers or children, they are only meant to serve a given function._

Will knows from his database that he is not replacing some long-dead human son. Bill Graham married once, years ago, and nothing ever came of it. He thinks, though, that maybe Bill Graham is just one of those men who has always wanted to be a father.

“Will,” Bill Graham—dad—says, “Everything okay?”

“Fine, dad,” Will says, using the smile that always puts a fond look in the man’s eyes. He looks at Will like he really is his son, flesh and blood be damned.

They finish work on the engine in companionable silence. Will wonders how to be a good son—a real one, like dad wants.

It is the first time his programming has failed him.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!


End file.
